This article is about the top 10 executed criminals with the most intriguing final words. The list includes:
10. Peter Kürten, known as the "Vampire of Düsseldorf," who expressed a twisted fascination with his own death.
9. Barbara Graham, a prostitute who was the third woman to be executed in California, and who remained defiant until the end.
8. Robert Alton Harris, who misquoted a line from the movie "Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey" before his execution.
7. Aileen Wuornos, a serial killer who claimed she was sailing away with the "rock," referring to Jesus Christ.
6. Gary Gilmore, who asked to be executed by firing squad and uttered the now-famous phrase "Let's do it."
5. Thomas J. Grasso, who was obsessed with SpaghettiOs and complained that he didn't get them for his last meal.
4. George Appel, a cop killer who made a joke about being a "baked apple" before his execution.
3. Wesley Allen Dodd, a child killer who requested his own hanging and found hope and peace in Jesus Christ.
2. Carl Panzram, a serial killer who hated humanity and showed no remorse for his crimes.
1. James French, who made a joke about his own execution, saying "How's this for your headline? French fries."
These individuals' final words offer a glimpse into their personalities and motivations, and are a fascinating, if morbid, aspect of true crime history.
Here are the key facts extracted from the text:
1. Peter Kürten, also known as "The Vampire of Düsseldorf", was a German serial killer who terrorized Düsseldorf in 1929 and 1930.
2. Peter Kürten was charged with nine murders and seven attempted murders.
3. Kürten's final words before his execution were: "Tell me, after my head is chopped off, will I still be able to hear, at least for a moment, the sound of my own blood gushing from the stump of my neck?"
4. Barbara Graham, also known as "Bloody Babs", was a California woman who was executed by gas chamber in 1955 for her role in the murder of an elderly woman.
5. Graham's final words before her execution were: "Good people are always so sure they're right."
6. Robert Alton Harris was a North Carolina man who was executed by gas chamber in 1992 for the murder of two 16-year-old boys.
7. Harris's final words before his execution were: "You can be a king or a street sweeper, but everybody dances with the reaper."
8. Aileen Wuornos was a Florida woman who was executed by lethal injection in 2002 for the murder of seven men.
9. Wuornos's final words before her execution were: "I'd just like to say I'm sailing with the rock, and I'll be back, like Independence Day, with Jesus June 6th, like the movie, on the big mother ship."
10. Gary Gilmore was a Utah man who was executed by firing squad in 1977 for the murder of two men.
11. Gilmore's final words before his execution were: "Let's do it."
12. Thomas J. Grasso was an Oklahoma man who was executed by lethal injection in 1995 for the murder of two elderly victims.
13. Grasso's final words before his execution were: "I did not get my SpaghettiOs, I got spaghetti."
14. George Apple was an Australian man who was executed by electric chair in 1928 for the murder of a police officer.
15. Apple's final words before his execution were: "Well, gentlemen, you're about to see a baked apple."
16. Wesley Allen Dodd was a Washington man who was executed by hanging in 1993 for the murder of three children.
17. Dodd's final words before his execution were: "I was once asked by somebody if there was any way sex offenders could be stopped. I said no. I was wrong. I was wrong when I said there was no hope, no peace. There is hope, there is peace. I found both in the Lord Jesus Christ."
18. Carl Panzram was a Minnesota man who was executed by hanging in 1930 for the murder of two young boys.
19. Panzram's final words before his execution were: "I am sorry for only two things: these two things are I am sorry that I have mistreated some few animals in my lifetime, and I am sorry that I am unable to murder the whole damn human race."
20. James French was a South Dakota man who was executed by electric chair in 1966 for the murder of a fellow inmate.
21. French's final words before his execution were: "Push the button."